Hi Everyone, I am just starting out in web/graphic design. I was wondering if it is ok to download/copy pic from a royalty-free site such as gettyimages.com and alter it somewhat and use it on a website for a client? I have been getting mixed reviews about if altering the picture makes it ok and note a copyright violation. I appreciate any advice.
If you BUY this image, you are free to use it according to the image license. If you download/copy it, you cannot use it for any commercial work.
Thanks for the advice. I was told by some people that if you alter an image then it is technically "your piece of art now." What are your thoughts on this?
for most royalty free images that you "purchase" you are can typically alter it any way that you want. However if you just download it without purchasing it then no you would not technically or legally get away with using the image for anything commercial.
As someone who's copyright has been frequently violated on the web, I know the answer to this one: No. (Bryanfilm & Varelse both got it right.) If you alter a piece of copyrighted work, that is called a derivative work. You may not make derivative works without the legal right to do so. If you just appropriate an image you find, without purchasing it or otherwise securing legal rights to it, and then alter it, that would be a violation of copyright law. The government's copyright website explains this clearly: http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ1.pdf You can also see that it's addressed in Chapter 106 of the copyright law: http://www.copyright.gov/title17/92chap1.html It is a myth that anything found online is in the public domain. It is also untrue that altering a work voids its copyright and makes it "your piece of art." So, if you would like to use - or alter - an image that you find on the web, please get the legal right to do so before doing so. all best, Denise
By the way, there are some great places to get free images: http://www.sxc.hu (my personal favorite) http://www.morguefile.com http://www.diwiesign.com/ http://www.imageafter.com/ http://www.piotrpix.com/ http://www.texturewarehouse.com/gallery/ http://www.openphoto.net/ (attribution usually required) for inexpensive images (from $1 & up) http://www.istockphoto.com http://www.stockxpert.com http://www.dreamstime.com Of course, read the terms of use on each of these sites. But, in most cases these images can be used for both commercial and noncommercial use, and you can alter them however you wish. No payment required. (A few may require an attribution (credit) to the photographer, but most don't.) best, Denise
i think you have to buy those images, then you can alteration. or else use creative common license based images, some of them allow to alter the main images.
Thank you everyone for clarifying. I do not think I would ever be comfortable using someone else's image for free. I wanted to make sure with those who actually know what they are talking about to get a straight answer. Thanks again!!